1336 IRLF 10 o o HE LIBRARY OF E UNIVERSITY CALIFORNIA PRESENTED BY :HARLES A. KOFOID AND PRUDENCE W. KOFOID WILLIAM TELL; OR, SWITZERLAND DELIVERED, CHEVALIER DEPLORE AN, Member of the Royal Academies of Paris, Madrid, Florence, TO WHICH IS ADDED, A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF TELL. " Go to the land where TELL drew freedom's bow ; And in the patriot's country thou shalt find A semblance 'twixt the scene and his immortal mind." CAMPBBLL. IContJon : JAMES WATSON, 18, COMMERCIAL PLACE, CITY ROAD, FINSBURY. 183G. A SHOUT ACCOUNT PQ / f 83 OF THE /~>G'82. /
they will supplicate heaven for vengeance; supplicate heaven to exterminate the destroyer of mankind! Yes, Geslcr, I forewarn thee of it. The cries of so many persecuted innocents, despoiled, debased, immolated by thy order; this blood shed hourly by thy hands, the vapour of which forms a thick and impervious cloud around thee; this blood is ascended to heaven: its sup- plicating cries have reached the throne of mercy, have reached the throne of the Deity, and soon will his justice strike thee! My country's deliverance it at hand: such my wishes, such my thoughts, and such my fondest hopes. Thou requested my sentiments: art thou satisfied? I have nothing more to add; for I will not degrade my reason so far as to tell thee a word respecting those mad decrees, those orders of a worse than mad- man, which dooms the unfortunate people of Uri to bow before the cap which covered thy head. Thou knowest all, and now ma vest thou command my punishment. n Gesler listened in silence, and contained his wrath the better to bring it down more heavily on the victim's head : he suspended his rage in the hope of finding, of inventing a punishment which could avenge him most of a man who appeared to despise death. He thought of those children whom he had the evening before confined in chains; he recalled to mind their firm and undaunted .manner: and, comparing it with what he had just heard, his ingenious fury suspected, divined, that those children, already so proud, so deeply impressed with the hatred of tyranny, could only belong to him who braved his wrath. He determined to assure himself of the truth, and gave a secret order that they should be brought forth. T Sarnem hastened to fetch them. During this period the cun- ning Gesler, dissimulating his wrath, feigned an indifference of thought; coolly interrogated William respecting his situation, his family, and the rank he held in Uri. William did not conceal his name; and this name, famous in Altorff, struck the Governor with .terror and alarm. "Why! how!" said he, with surprise and fear mingled in his countenance, "is it thee? thee, so renowned for conducting a boat across the tempestuous lake? thee, so expert at the bow? whose arrows never miss their aim?" "Even so," replied Tell; and I blush that my name should only be known by unavailing attempts in my country's cause. This vain glory is unworthy the death I am about to suffer in pronouncing the name of Liberty. " At that instant Sarnem returned leading Clara and Albert. When Tell perceived his son, he uttered a shriek of joy, and flew towards him. " O Albert! " he cried, " O my son! I can embrace thee yet! but where? how? why . . . .?" "No! WILLIAM TELL. no ! you are not my father, " Albert immediately replied, who saw William's danger, and knew the fate which Gesler had pre- pared for his unfortunate father. "No; I repeat it, I do not know you. My family [looking round him] are not here." William, astonished, remained motionless, his arms open and extended : he could not comprehend why his son should refuse his embraces, and dare to deny any knowledge of him. Clara augmented his surprise in confirming what Albert had said, and repeating with him that William was not their father. The heart of Tell murmured at the fact, and began to be angry at the measure; whilst Gesler, whose savage eyes observed their varied emotions; Gesler ; who now had penetrated the mystery which he wished to know; enjoyed at once the fear, surprise, and sorrow, of the father and his children. A horrid joy diffused itself over his countenance; his eyes sparkled with the red fire of vengeance. "1 am not to be deceived, " said he. " William, behold thy son, and this son has excited my wrath. My patience, wearied with thy outrages, at length has found a punishment proportioned to thy audacity. I will pronounce it: listen. " I wish, even in punishing thee, to render homage to this rare talent of which thy happy country boasts so much; I wish, that, in contemplating nit/ justice, the people of Altorff should admire % skill. They shall give thee back thy bow ; they shall place thy son before thee at the distance of an hundred paces. An apple shall be placed upon his head; that apple shall be the mark for thy arrow If thy hand, sure of its aim, carries the apple away with the arrow, I will show mercy to you both; restore you both your liberty. If thou refusest this proof, thy son shall die before thine eyes." "Baibarian!" replied Tell, " what demon from the regions of the damned, can have inspired thee with such an idea? O, God ! who hearest us at this moment, wilt thou suffer these horrible excesses of the genius of cruelty? No! I will not accept the proof; no! I will not expose myself to the danger of becoming the murderer of my son! I ask for death; I implore it of thy executioners: they are all here; all who surround thee have drenched their guilty hands an hundred times in blood. Let them turn their swords on me; let them be levelled at my heart! I beg it of thee; I conjure thee to do it ! Let me but die innocent; ret me die as a man, and as a father! Hear me, Gesler : thy numerous guards, the example of a whole people, the certitude, the sight of punishment, could not make me bow- before thee : I preferred death to such baseness. But now, to WILLIAM TELL. 37 obtain that death, to escape from the dreadful danger of mur- dering my child, see me kneel before thee ! Promise me death, Gesler. I will bow before thy pride! 7 ' "No!" cried Albert, whose youth and manners touched with pity the hearts even of the satellites ; " no ! yield not to his request, I accept I accept the proof: be it as thou hast pro- mised. My father shall be free! Courage, courage, my worthy Sire ! Heaven will guide thy hand. Fear not ; thy son is in safety. Pardon me if my tenderness could for a moment forget my father. I trembled for thee, and thee alone : to save thee, I abandoned what is dearer to me than all the world, the name, the endearing name, of thy son ! O, my father ! pardon me, my father ! my beloved father ! Permit me to repeat an hundred times that name which but so lately I refused to acknowledge. Be of good courage : thou wilt not kill me. A secret voice whispers to my heart that I am safe. Lead me forth : lead me forth ! Clara go ; but take care not to acquaint my mother. " Albert threw himself into William's bosom, who received, embraced, and pressed him to his heart : he wished to speak ; he drowned him with his tears : he could only repeat, with a trembling and stifled voice, " No, my son! no, my dear son!" Clara swooned ; the soldiery carried her into the palace : and the inflexible Gesler, without being moved at this spectacle, repeated his terrible order; offered for the last time to William the choice of seeing his son perish before his eyes, or accepting the proof. William heard him; his head was bent, and his eyes fixed on the earth; he remained a few moments without giving any reply, still holding Albert in his arms. He suddenly raised his head looked at the Governor ; his eyes were red with tears, and flamed with indignation. "I will obey," replied he. " Lead me forth ! I will obey ! " The father and the son, holding each other by the hand, were immediately surrounded by the guards; they left the palace together under the conduct of Sarnem. The people were already informed of the horrid spectacle about to be exhibited, and hastened to the market place. Each murmured from the bottom of his heart, but each feared to express a sentiment of pity. Their fearful looks sought William; they discovered him sur- rounded by lances, walking by the side of Albert, who smiled as he went on; tears, however, gushed in his eyes, when he beheld the looks of his father; but terror restrained those tears Gesler would have punished them as a crime. Every eye was bent to the earth : a melancholy silence reigned amongst the people ; they felt, suffered, and were silent. 38 WILLIAM TELL. The space was already measured by the savage Sarnem; a double line of soldiers enclosed this space on three sides: the people pressed behind them. Albert, at the extremity, beheld all the preparations with a countenance tranquil and serene. Gcsler, at some distance behind Tell, remained surrounded by his guard, and observed with inquietude the melancholy silence of the people; and William, surrounded with lances, remained with his eyes thoughtfully cast on the ground. They presented him his bow and a single arrow: after having tried the point, he broke it, and asked for his quiver. They brought it: he emptied it on the ground, examined, chose amongst his arrows, remained some time kneeling, seized a favourable moment, and concealed an arrow under his dress; he took another in his hand, that which he meant to use. Sarnem ordered the remain- der to be taken away, and William slowly strung his bow of yew. He looked at his son stopped raised his eyes to heaven threw down the bow and the arrow and begged to speak to Albert. Four soldiers led William to him. "My son," said he, " I must embrace thee once more. I must repeat what I have already told thee: be motionless, my son ; rest with one knee on the"gr un d: thou wilt then be more firm, or more cer- tain of not moving. Thou wilt pray to God, my son, to protect thy unfortunate father. Oh, no! pray only for thyself: let not the idea of thy father unnerve thee; 'twould weaken, perhaps, that heroic and manly courage which I admire, though I cannot imitate it. No, my son! I can never shew myself so great as thee. Preserve ! preserve, that fortitude of which I should wish to give thee an example. Yes; remain thus thus, my boy! ;>s my fondest hopes could wish. rCould wish! Wretch that .1 am! O thou Most High, thou permittest! hear me, Albert : turn thy head ; thou do'st not know, thou canst not foresee, the effect which it would have on thee, to see the glittering steel levelled at thy face. Turn thy head, my boy! and do not look at me." "No! no!" replied the boy; "fear nothing: I will look at you. I shall not see the arrow; I shall only see my father." " O, my dear boy! " cried Tell, "don't speak to me! don't speak! Thy voice, thy accent, will deprive me of my strength. Cease, pray to God, and do not stir! " William embraced him anew turned to leave him; embra- ced him once more repeated his last words placed the apple n his head and hastened to the spot assigned for him. He took his bow and his arrow; fixed his eyes on the mark so dear; twice he essayed to raise his bow, and twice it fell from WILLIAM TELL. 39 his paternal hands. At length, summoning up all his skill, his strength, and courage, he wiped the tears from his streaming eyes; invoked the Great Eternal, who from heaven's high throne watches over parents; and, nerving his trembling arm, he endeavoured, he accustomed his eye to see nothing but the apple. Profitting by the only moment, swift as thought when he could forget his son, he drew the bow; the arrow whizzed on the wing, cleft the apple, and carried it away. The place resounded with the shouts of joy. Albert flew and embraced his father, who pale and motionless, overcome with the effort he had made, returned not his caresses : he looked at him: his eyes were swollen with tears; he scarcely heard what his son said to him: his knees tottered he was ready to fall. He fell into the arms of Albert, who discovered the arrow concealed beneath his clothes. Gesler was already near him; Gesler snatched the arrow. William recovered his senses, and immediately fixed his eyes on the cruel Gesler, who instantly addressed him : " unequalled archer!" said he, "I will fulfill my promise; I will pay the price of thy astonishing skill. But, first, tell me what was intended by this arrow, which thou concealed from my sight. Only one was necessary: for what purpose was this?'" "To pierce thy heart, tyrant, ' replied Tell, " if my unfortunate hand had shortened the days of my son ! " At these words, which a father could not retain, the terrified Governor rushed into the midst of his satellites. He revoked his promise; he ordered Sarnem to load William with chains, and conduct him to the fortress. They obeyed ; they tore him from Albert's embrace, who desired in vain to accompany his father. The guards repulsed Albert: the people murmured, but were compelled to stifle their sentiments. Gesler hastened to his palace, and ordered all his troops to be in arms. Nume- rous platoons of Austrians paraded in every part of the city, and compelled the affrighted inhabitants to conceal themselves in their houses. Terror reigned in Altorff, and the executioners with savage anxiety waited for new victims. END OF THE THIRD BOOK. 40 WILLIAM TELL. BOOK FOURTH. WHILE the restless tyrant secured himself within his fortress, doubled the guards around the ramparts, and dreaded lest the populace, enraged, should endeavour to rescue William, Albert, the unhappy Albert, with tearful eyes and arms extended, demanded of all he met to restore to him his father. Repulsed by the ferocious soldiery, who guarded every avenue, with agonizing shrieks he paced around the citadel. Clara who during the horrid scene had been detained in the palace, at length escaped the watchfulness of those who guarded her, and sought Albert on every side : she succeeded in finding'him, flew into his arms, and sought to dry his tears. " My father is in chains ! " said Albert ; " my unhappy father is about to perish ! Clara, listen to me : I Jiave lost the cheering hope of gaining admittance to his prison, of remaining with him, of attending him, and ending my life with his. I will yet attempt the only chance now left me of his safety. I hasten to Under- wald : I will acquaint your father of the danger of his friend. Melctal has many friends ; Melctal is brave, has arms, and will fly to his deliverance. I intreat you, my good, my much loved Clara, return to my mother; tell her what has happened, and what I am gone about. Go, Clara ; go quickly and console her. I shall not return without Melctal I will perish, or I will save my father ! You must supply my place to my beloved mother. *' He spoke, and, directly leaving Clara, in eager haste he leaves the city, and soon reaches the mountains. Clara hastily returned towards the -cottage of Tell, where the old Henry, where the gentle Emma, far from William, from their children, whose fate they knew not, consumed the hours in anxious expectation. The sudden arrival of Clara, pale, and almost breathless with fear, and suffused with tears, increased the agonies of Emma : she arose, and flew towards her ; at the same time exclaiming, " Albert ! Albert, my son ! Where, where is my boy ? ' ; " He is alive ! he is at liberty ! " hastily answered Clara, who threw herself into her grandsire's arms, embraced him, embraced Emma ; and in a faultering voice she then related all that had WILLIAM TELL. 41 happened ; how they were led from prison to be confronted with Tell; and the dreadful alternative to which both the father and the son were compelled to submit. She knew not much more, but that William was in prison, loaded with chains; Albert, to procure his father's deliverance, had gone to seek out Melctal; Tell was threatened with death, and the Governor had sworn it. At this melancholy recital, Emma, overwhelmed with grief; fell senseless on the bench she sat. The old man, in frantic agony, uttered the most lamentable cries ; he insisted on being taken to his son would fight with him, and perish in assisting to deliver William. Clara with difficulty restrained the pitiable old man, runs to the assistance of Emma, arid exerts her tender cares to soothe these two unhappy parents. At length, after the first effusions of so deep a sorrow, old Henry regained the coolness of reason; regained his courage and his prudence; seized the hands of Emma, already on his lap, and pressed them to his heart. " Weep not, " said he, " my virtuous friend, weep not: let us not lose in vain tears a period, every moment of which is so precious. Albert is in Underwald ; in a few hours he will reach my son. I know Melctal. This very night, Melctal, followed by all his friends, will take the route to Altorff; he will reach there to-morrow, and attempt every thing to save William. But, perhaps, the few friends he has may be insufficient for the grand design. I have several in the town; I will go and arouse their courage, excite and encou- rage them : they will lead me to the market place at the dawn of day. There will I speak, there will I shew the wounds I have received from Gesler, the sockets from whence my eyes were torn by his myrmidons. My age, my hoary locks, my disfigured face, my blood yet upon my clothes, and the tears of this feeble girl, all will aid the eloquence of truth. I hope it, I am certain of it: the people, moved with their wrongs and mine, will be proud to avenge them both. The crowd will imme- diately increase the number of friends I had collected: my son and your's will come ; they will find a numerous body ready to join them. We will attack the fort. I will remain in the thick- est of the battle, to animate our brave soldiers ; I will make the air echo with the names of our country and Liberty! They will carry me if I cannot follow them; they will carry me to thy husband; they will bring us both back to thy arms. Yes, I am certain of it: God inspires me with the thought, and announces to me the certitude of victory. Come, daughter let us go this instant; come, give me my stick, and lend me thine arm. Night cannot be far off: the night may be of use to us." 42 WILLIAM TELL, "I approve your design," said Emma, "but it is I who must conduct you. Yet, ere we leaveliome, deign to hear me for a moment: I know, though he has never informed me of it, that my husband has long meditated the grand design of delivering his country. His secret journeys in Schwitz, in Underwald, in Urseren; the quantity of arms which he has concealed ; his frequent nocturnal absence; and the p re-occupation of mind which I read on his countenance.; all confirmed me of a con- spiracy which has been long forming in the three Cantons, and that William is the soul of it. I know not the names of the other chiefs; but I know that those chiefs exist, and that at a certain moment a signal, without doubt, is settled upon and agreed between them. I have not been able to discover what this signal is : but a few days ago a thought darted across my brain like lightening, from a word my husband dropped : this, with several others, has led me to suspect, has led me to believe, that the signal agreed upon by the patriot chiefs could be no other than a burning pile on the summit of this mountain. Time and assistance are wanting to form the pile to-night; but a secret voice whispers to my heart, that, if we could only make such a large fire, all the friends of my husband would haste to his deliverance. I consult thee, Meictal: my weak hand will suffice to set fire to the cottage which has served for our asylum. It stands on the most elevated spot. The vast flame will be seen by all the three Cantons. What is my house, my goods, to me, when my husband is in danger? If I save him, thou wilt receive us; if I lose him, I then only want a tomb! " She spoke, and old Henry encouraged her in the design. Emma seized a bundle of dry branches, lighted it in the cottage, threw the flaming brands about her, and burnt without regret, without a sigh or tear, the cradle of her child and the chaste hymeneal bed, which set the whole dwelling in a blaze; when, feeling certain that nothing could extinguish the flames, she gave her arm to the old man, who was supported on the other side by Clara; and thus they descended together the craggy moun- tain, and took the road to AltorfF. During the deep silence which terror had spread throughout the town, the old man, Emma, and Clara, knocked at the doors of their friends. The fire lighted by the hand of Emma augmented, and, reaching the thatched roof of the cottage, the thatch blazed, and cast an immense glare of light. V truer perceived it in Schwitz; the fiery Meictal, whom Albert had not yet reached, leaped for joy at the sight; and Furst, in the heart of Urseren, doubted not but that William was at the head of the brave inhabitants of Altorff, and called on him for succour. WILLIAM TELL. 43 Those three chiefs took arms at the same moment, and hastened to collect their friends, and call them to liberty. Their friends awoke, seized their arms, assembled in silence, formed them- selves into battalions; and -from three quarters, almost at the same instant, the three chiefs marched towards Altorff, followed by troops weak in numbers, but strong in courage, and resolved to perish or deliver their country. With accelerated steps they hasted onwards : retarded by the snows, by torrents, and unbeaten roads, they dreaded lest they should arrive too late at the fort ; at this formidable fort, which they must attack at once, and take it with the tyrant. But he, full of inquietude, alarmed by the emotions he witnessed in the people, fearing for his prisoner, trembling for his own life, had already taken new measures, any one of which would render vain all the efforts of the three patriots. Gesler at the decline of day, reflecting that his fortress filled with soldiers did not contain provisions sufficient for a long siege, fearing to see himself beseiged in this impregnible fortress, that he should not be able to communicate with the rest of his army scattered in Lucerne, Gesler called Sarnem to give him new orders; " Sar- nem, " said he, " I am going to leave Altorff, where thou shalt command in my absence. I leave thee my brave soldiers, who will obey thy voice, and thine alone. This vile people, whose insolent murmurs are yet heard, shall soon be crushed by the re- inforcements which I will send to thee. Let a large boat be in- stantly prepared, in which fifty men chosen from my guard can go with me this evening. As soon as night veils the earth, let the audacious William be conveyed to the boat: he yet dares to brave my vengeance. Let him be laden with chains ; take care of that, and see that he is conducted by a strong guard. I will myself take him to the strong castle of Kusnach, at the extremity of the lake of Lucerne: there, more safely guarded than here, there he shall remain in a dungeon chained, and punished by every ingenuity of torture that can leave the spark of life existing, and prove to the inhabitants of Altorff what may be expected from my vengeance. " Sarnem, proud of being chosen to replace the Governor, hastened -to obey his orders. The boat was soon prepared, and fifty chosen archers were conducted by Sarnem himself to the dungeon of Tell, The hero loaded with heavy chains, which scarcely allowed him the power of moving, is placed under the charge of those fifty archers; and as soon as night had spread her sable mantle on the earth, they conducted him in silence towards the shore, where Gesler, alone and in disguise, had already secretly 44 WILLIAM TELL. repaired. Gesler made them place the captive in the hold of the vessel, surrounded by his archers ; seated himself near the prow : lavished his wine and money upon the soldiers and the rowers; and they departed without observation. The vessel scudded over the waves : the air was pure, the water smooth, and the stars shone brightly in the firmament. A gentle southern breeze aided the efforts of the rowers, and tempered the rigour of the cold, which night, the time of year and the frost would otherwise render almost insupportable. Every thing favoured Gesler s wishes. He soon passed over the first lake of four Cantons; steered his course direct for Brunnen, in order to traverse the strait which leads into the second. Tell, in the mean time, borne down with the weight of his chains, stretched on the deck, in the midst of his guards, recognized on the left bank the barren rocks of Grutty ; and that cavern, where, on the very evening before, he meditated with his friends, the freedom of his country. The sight of this, the recollection of what had passed there but so lately, nearly staggered his resolution. He felt the big drops stand on his eye, and, quickly wiping them away, he turned aside his head. William looked up to heaven, which at that moment seemed to have forsaken him. On a sudden he beheld on the side of Altorff a red and glimmering light: soon the light increased, and Tell perceived a bright flame ascending from above Uri. His heart palpitated with violent emotion: he could not divine what occasioned this signal, the secret of which he had entrusted to no person whatsoever. He doubts he looks again with eager eyes; arid at length is convinced that the blaze seems to come from the mountain on which his dwelling was situated. He gave thanks to heaven, though ignorant whether it was a benefit : he hoped not, he thought not, that this circumstance might save his life; but it might save his country : and this thought rendered him forgetful of his own immediate danger. Gesler and his soldiers had also perceived the flames ; they pointed it out with much surprise; they attributed it to some burning cottage, and heeded not the misfortune which concerned their enemies only. Gesler urged on the rowers; impatient to arrive at the destined place, he ordered them to increase their efforts. The vessel steered toward the west, passed the narrow strait, and rowed on the deep waters of the dangerous lake of Underwald : there on a sudden the south wind ceased to aid the rapid vessel; the north and the west winds now reigned in the troubled atmosphere. The one, the harbinger of tempests, swelled, heaped, and WILLIAM TELL. 4.5 gathered the billows into mountains, that instaataneously broke with a tremendous noise over the vessel, which yielding to their force, was driven in each succeeding instant in a different direc- tion : vain were the efforts of the rowers. Now they were driven with impetuosity towards the shore, and immediately back towards the straits. The other, leading on the hoar frost, clouds, and snow, covered the heavens with a funereal veil, and spread the shades of darkness on the surface of the foaming deep; struck the faces and the hands of the rowers with the crystalized points of ice, compelled them to abandon their labours, and hid from their downcast eyes the sight of their danger ; filled their vessel with the frozen flakes of snow, and, contending with the north wind, turned the bark round on her keel; now bore her high as the mountain tops on the white foaming billow ; now precipitated her into an abyss of waters, menaced on each side by mountainous billows ready to break over her, and bury the whole amid the howling tempest. The soldiers, pale and overwhelmed with horror, felt their approaching death inevitable, and prayed on their knees to that God whom they had so long forgotten. The cowardly Geslcr, trembling yet more than his soldiers, heaped promises of rewards and treasures on the rowers if they could save his life : but they, sad, silent, and half dead with fear, replied to his entreaties only by silence. Tears, the dishonourable tears of weakness and of cowardice, bathed for 'the first time the ferocious eyes of the Governor. He was about to perish; he felt certain of it: his riches and his might, the savage power with which he swayed, and his trusty slaves, all now availed him nothing; they could not avert the stroke of fate. He wept; he regretted life; regret- ted that his thirst of blood could now no longer be supplied. Tell, tranquil in the same place, less moved by the cries of the soldiers and the fury of the winds than his inability to dis- cover the cavern of Grutty. Tell waited death with a smile, and gloried in the idea of the happiness his country would derive from the tyrant's fate: in silence he enjoyed the fears, the trembling sobs and sighs, the torments, which Gesler felt; when one of the rowers suddenly addressed the cruel monster : " We are lost! " said he: "it is no longer in our power to withstand the violence of the north wind, which will instantly dash our vessel against the rocks which border on the lake. A man, the most renowned in our three Cantons in the art of braving a storm, can alone afford us even a hope of existence: that man is here, here, loaded with chains. Choose, Gesler; choose between the death of all, and his liberty! " Gesler trembled at 46 WILLIAM TELL. the thought; his invincible hatred for Tell effected a counterpoise even in his pusillanimous soul between death and the hero's liberty. He hesitated, he gave no answer; but the prayers, the murmurs of the soldiers and the rowers, who asked, who begged, and pressed him to save his own life and theirs, in liberating his prisoner, the fear of being disobeyed if he refused, and the .increasing tempest, determined him at length. " Take off his chains, " said he. " I pardon all his crimes, I restore him his life and liberty, if he brings us safe to land. " The soldiers and the rowers hastened to set William free. He arose, and, without saying a word, took the command of the helm ; turned the bark at his pleasure as a child would do a wand : he opposed the prow to the contending winds, whose forces, thus divided, held them in equilibrio. Profiting by a moment of calm, with the rapidity of thought he turned the vessel round ; kept her in the only direction which could save them; seized two oars, and by his individual efforts succeeded, in spite of the winds, waves and tempest, in repassing the straits. The dark- ness of the night prevented Gesler from perceiving that he was returning. William redoubled his efforts in silence; the first rays of refracted light darted through the black clouds of the tempest ; but he was in the lake of Uri, and he perceived the dying flame of the signal given oh the mountain of Altorff. This light served him for a beacon : he had long known the lake ; he avoided the shoals and rocks, and approached by degrees the shore of the Canton of Schwitz. He thought of Verner; he calculated that Verner ought to be on his march; and that the roads, covered with snow, would oblige him to coast along the lake. In this feeble hope he steered the vessel, feigning igno- rance of the place the tempest drove her to, and increased the fears of Gesicr and his soldiers. At length, streaks of red appeared towards the east, and the storm lulled by degrees with the rising beams of morning. The opening day discovered to Tell the rocks near AltorfF, before the tyrant, whose scrutinizing look he feared, had time to recog- nise them. William directs the vessel's- course, and urged the rowers to their utmost exertions. Gesler, whose cruelty returned as danger disappeared, observed William with a suspicious eye: he wished, yet dared not, again to fetter him. The soldiers and the rowers, perceiving however where they were, acquainted the Governor, who, advancing hastily towards Tell, enraged, and in a voice of passion, demanded why the vessel which he had charge of bent her course towards AltorfF. William heeded him not he answered not, but laid the vessel alongside of a WILLIAM TELL. 47 rock a litt'e distance from the shore; with one hand eagerly snatched a bow and arrow which an archer held, and, with the velocity of lightning, he shoved the vessel against the rock. There, without a moment's rest, he bounded like the chamois of the mountains, leaped upon another nearer to the bark, quickly climbed the craggy bank, and mounted to its summit; like to the Alpine eagle when he reposes amongst the clouds, and looks with piercing eyes upon the harmless flocks covering the verdant rallies. The astonished Governor uttered a cry of fury and of rage; he instantly orders every one to disembarkj and directs his soldiers to divide themselves, and surround the rock, where he beheld the hero. They obey, and already prepare their bows. Gesler, in the midst of them, wishes their united arrows drenched in the blood of William. William also has his plans: he stop- ped not in one place he only shews himself to draw the soldiers after him : he permitted the armed body to approach him near enough to do the work of death; he fixed his eye with steadiness on Gesler, fitted the arrow to the string, and, pointing it against the tyrant's heart, it cleft the air. The arrow flew, whistling in its rapid course, and pierced the heart of Gesler. The tyrant fell, muttering nought but rage, fresh execrations, and vomitting out the purple tide of life ; his guilty soul fled, while curses closed his lips. William had already disappeared; William, more active than the fawn, darted from the summit of the rock : he flew along the fields of ice, traversed the now unfrequented paths, and took the road to Altorff. He soon discovered in the snow the recent traces of their friends, whom Verner that very night had led from Schwitz. William followed them; he ran, he neared them. Tumultuous shouts and the noise of arms are heard at a distance: he flew with all his speed. Arrived at the market place 'tis already filled; occupied by three battalions of heroes. Verner, at the head of the warriors of Schwitz, wished to secure the gates before they attack the fort ; Furst, with the brave youths of Uri, solicits the post of danger; Melctal, followed by those of Underwald, cleft the air with his ponderous axe, and with loud shouts demanded the order for attack. Albert, who had never quitted iiim, armed with a long lance, pronounced the name of Tell, demanded him of the soldiers, and pointed at a distance to the prison where they still believed that William was confined. The old Henry, Clara, Emma, mixed amongst the ranks of the scat- tered troops, and urged them on to the attack. Sudden and unexpected, William appeared in the centre of 48 WILLIAM T1.I.L. the three patriot battalions. An universal shout of joy was heard throughout the ranks, and echoed from the mountains: a profound silence succeeded to it. All attentively waited for the orders of Tell all seemed attentive to obey him alone. " My friends, my companions, " said the hero, " Gesler is no more ! this bow, this arm, has punished all his crimes. The corpse of Gesler, stretched upon the bank of the lake, is surrounded by those vile myrmidons whom terror had dispersed : we have, then, nothing now to dread. Our country is revenged, but she is not yet free; nor will she ever be so, at least so long as one single stone remains of that frowning citadel which so long has awed us. Let us, then, attack this formidable work, the sole hope, sole refuge, of the ferocious Austrians; let our troops march together, and let the bravest lead the onset! " He spoke, and seizing the standard of Uri in his left hand, with his right he grasped his battle-axe, and rushed onwards to the hill on which the fort was built. Furst and his followers closely pursued his steps ; Verner, with those of Schwitz, pressed after them : Melctal with Underwald had already got half way ; and Albert marched by the side of his father. Sarnem, prepared, awaited them. A cloud of arrows and of lances flew from the frowning ramparts: they checked not the onset of the assailants, who advanced without exchanging a single arrow to the foot of the walls: 'Twas then the terrible, the fierce Sarnem, at a signal which he had agreed on, hurled from the battlements huge rocks and stones, followed by boiling pitch and oil. The brave war- riors of the three Cantons are every where repulsed : the burning oil penetrates their garments, and consumes them in horrid agonies; they expire in excrutiating pain; they bit the dust, and uttered their last piercing cries: but their "cries were still for Liberty! Regardless of their pain and agony, the dying heroes exhorted, encouraged their companions, and bade them inarch over their bodies to scale the citadel. The Austrians insulted them, and mocked their woes. Sarnem, placed between two battlements, smiled contemptuously at their powerless efforts: he animated his soldiers, and his presence and his cou- rage prolong this fierce attack. William, surrounded by the dying and the dead, preserved his coolness and intrepidity; but at length, alarmed at the great number of his faithful soldiers he had lost, he called to him Melctal; and, reproaching himself with having too easily listened to the eager suggestions of bravery alone in making the attack, he exhorted him, nay he commanded him, to withdraw his brave troops from the combat, and to make an attack on the WILLIAM TELL. 49 eastern side, whilst Verner and himself should redouble their efforts to conceal this movement from the enemy. Melctal obeyed; William and Verner again give the word, uttered loud shouts; and Sarncm and his troops, occupied with the fresh assault, unite all their efforts to oppose the attack of William. In the mean time, Melctal and his associates reached the eastern gate, which was but weakly guarded : he struck it with his powerful axe, laid fire to the frame, and the gate is soon in flames. Melctal darted forwards, and penetrated into the fort with the youths of Underwald : all yield, all fly before him. Sarnem, engaged in resisting Tell, heard the cries of the flying and the conquerors: he hastens to oppose them ; he turns, and beholds Melctal. Melctal, rapid as the thunderbolt, raised his ponderous axe, and cleft his hated rival; then, advancing to the edge of the battlements, he extended his hands, and cried out Victory!!.' William soon joined him, and the standard of Uri floated over the walls of this once formidable castle. Melctal and Verner, standing on aheap of slain, gave thanks to the Almighty, and answered to the acclamations of the people whom they had delivered. The fort was soon cleared of the dead bodies which had filled it. The troops of the three Cantons surrounded their gallant chiefs, and carried them in triumph amongst the inhabitants of Altorff, who, running from all quarters, were assembled in the market place to behold their deliverers, and to confide to their wisdom, their courage, and their talents, the defence of Liberty; but William entreated their silence, and, having obtained it, thus addressed them: " My countrymen ! at length you are restored to freedom ; but this freedom, so dear to us, is perhaps more difficult to preserve than to acquire: for the one, bravery will alone suffice; for the other, w r e must possess virtues, austere, steady, and immoveable. Guard against the delirium of victory; guard against a blind adoration of those who obtained it for you. You already speak of chusing us your chiefs; while the only recompence which I require, the only one my heart now wishes for, is to become a soldier; and to enjoy that equality, that charm, so pure, so dear, to true republicans. In a republic, my friends, we all are useful. Perish the man who thinks other- wise ! and unhappy be that people who will not punish even the thought! "Assemble together, my friends, to weigh in the meditation of your wisdom both your interests and your designs; let every 50 WILLIAM TELL. man, according to the laws, think, examine, and advise, what he deems best for his country's good; let this privilege be given to every citizen of the- age of twenty years. In proportion as we love our country, we have a right to interest ourselves about her welfare, and to contribute to it, both by our personal efforts and our understandings. Elect aLandamman ; let that ancient title, respected by our forefathers, become more so amongst us; let a council direct him; and let him, in turn, direct the council. Enact laws: without laws, what would you be? Liberty is but another name for submission to wise and prudent laws : without them, it would be licentiousness. Preserve your morals ; let them become, if possible, more pure. Without true virtue, there is no liberty. The republican, by this name, is placed, in the middle state betwixt men and angels: let him, then, be better; let him, then, be greater than Jiis fellow men by whom he is surrounded. "For myself, fellow citizens! I wish not, I ask not, nor will accept, only the endearing name of Fellow Patriot, and the right of combating in your ranks. You must expect new traits of your courage; you must expect that the Emperor will endea- vour to regain the sceptre you have now wrested from him. Prepare yourselves, then, to resist his efforts; prepare for battles, and trust your cause to God! Call, however, to the assistance of Liberty the other Cantons of Switze; land : either I am much deceived, or their hearts already beat in unison with ours Then, by dint of arms, of virtue, and of courage, you will found a republic which will one day become the terror and the admira- tion of all Europe; then will mighty kings be proud of the name of Ally, and will believe themselves invincible while they have the Swiss for their defenders; then, reaping the full honours both of valour and of wisdom, you will prefer the glory of being Men and Free!" lie spoke, and the people, with loud continued plaudits, signified their approbation : they immediately proceeded to the election of their magistrates. Tell, Verner Melctal, now returned to their original rank of simple citizens; received the humble reward, the meed of valour and of virtue, a crown of oak : they returned to their former ranks. And this people for two hundred years resisted all the power of the Empire, and and founded its freedom on its victories. THE END. J Watson, Printer, 18, Commercial Place, City Koad. 14 DAY USE RBTURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LOAN DEPT. This book is due on below, or feet to immediate recall. 21A-60w-7 '66 (G4427slO)476B .General Library University of California Berkeley